WO2022269060A1

WO2022269060A1 - Method for preventing a risky situation for a parked vehicle

Info

Publication number: WO2022269060A1
Application number: PCT/EP2022/067400
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jean-Philippe Boyer
Original assignee: Continental Automotive Gmbh
Priority date: 2021-06-25
Filing date: 2022-06-24
Publication date: 2022-12-29
Also published as: FR3124629B1; FR3124629A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for preventing a risky situation for a parked vehicle, comprising the steps of obtaining a first parking location of the vehicle, obtaining an indication according to which the first location is a risky location, broadcasting a warning message for the attention of the occupants of the vehicle, detecting a movement of the vehicle upon the expiration of a predefined time period after broadcasting the message and, when it is determined that the vehicle has not been moved, a step of triggering a call to an emergency call centre. The invention also relates to a device capable of implementing such a method.

Description

DESCRIPTION

Title: risk situation prevention process for a parked vehicle Technical field

The invention belongs to the field of road safety and relates in particular to a method for preventing accidents when a vehicle is parked in a risk zone.

Prior art

In order to improve safety, many countries require that new vehicles marketed include an emergency call system. Such a system is configured to automatically establish a call to an emergency service when an emergency condition is detected, for example when an airbag is triggered. The call can also be triggered manually by the user if needed. By notifying the emergency services as soon as an accident occurs, the response time is significantly improved, which increases the chances of survival for the occupants and limits the risk of another accident. Unfortunately, such a system is usually triggered in reaction to an emergency situation, but does not prevent a dangerous situation because the triggering of preventive emergency calls would cause a considerable load on the emergency services which would limit their effectiveness. .

Among the high-risk situations, mention may be made of the case of a vehicle parked in a dangerous location, such as on the edge of a freeway or when exiting a bend. In such circumstances, the risk of additional accidents can be reduced by installing a warning triangle 150 meters ahead of the vehicle, as required by the regulations. However, the establishment of the warning triangle has drawbacks. On the one hand, its installation is dangerous for the driver who has to get out of his vehicle along the edge of the road to position it correctly, and on the other hand this signaling is not suitable for all situations. For example, the triangle is of no help when a vehicle is stopped on a level crossing.

There is therefore a need for a solution making it possible to prevent the risk of an accident when a vehicle is parked in a dangerous location which does not have the aforementioned drawbacks. Summary of the invention

To this end, a method is proposed for preventing a risky situation for a parked vehicle, the method comprising the following steps:

Obtaining a first vehicle parking location,

Obtaining an indication that the first location is a risky location,

Broadcast of a warning message to the attention of the occupants of the vehicle, and When it is detected, at the expiration of a predefined period after the broadcast of the message, that the vehicle has not been moved, triggering a call to an emergency call processing centre.

In this way, the method makes it possible to prevent an accident when a vehicle is parked at a risk location without generating an excessive load for an emergency call center. This improves the safety of the occupants of the vehicle. The distress call is only triggered if the vehicle has not been moved following the broadcast of an alert message to the attention of its occupants. In this way, the number of calls to a rescue center is limited to particularly risky situations, in particular situations in which a vehicle cannot be moved to a safe location.

According to a particular embodiment, an indication that the first location is a risk location is obtained by querying a geospatial database from at least the first location of the vehicle to obtain an indication relating to the dangerousness of the location of the vehicle.

The vehicle can thus consult a database comprising at-risk parking zones. Such a database can be hosted by a server or be stored in a memory of the vehicle.

According to a particular embodiment, an indication that the first location is a risky location is obtained by analyzing data from an exterior camera of the vehicle. In this way, the vehicle can detect an unlisted risk location and/or specify the degree of risk by, for example, estimating the width of a verge on which the vehicle is parked or by determining, for example, that the vehicle is parked around a bend or at the top of a hill. The analysis of the images also makes it possible to detect occasional and/or conjunctural risk situations that cannot be mapped, linked for example to the evolution of the vegetation or the state of the traffic, such as a distance between the parked vehicle and vehicles in circulation. Of course, other types of sensors can be used alone or in combination with one or more cameras of the vehicle to determine the dangerousness of the parking place.

According to a particular embodiment, the method is such that an indication that the first location is a risky location is obtained by detecting at least one signal transmitted by a second vehicle.

In this way, a vehicle traveling close to the parked vehicle can inform it of a risk associated with the location at which it is parked. The parked vehicle can for example detect, using a camera and/or a microphone, a flashing of the headlights or an audible warning triggered by a vehicle traveling nearby and determine that the parking space is at risk. As a variant, the indication can be transmitted by a wireless communication means in accordance with a V2V (Vehicle to Vehicle) or V2X (Vehicle To Everything) communication protocol.

In a particular embodiment, the step of detecting that the vehicle has not been moved comprises the following steps:

Obtaining a second location of the vehicle,

Comparison of the second location with the first location to detect a movement of the vehicle.

The comparison of the first location datum with the second location datum makes it possible to ensure that the vehicle has indeed been moved after the broadcast of the alert message. In a particular embodiment, the step of detecting that the vehicle has not been moved comprises a measurement of the evolution of a speed of movement of the vehicle within the predefined period which follows the broadcast of the warning message.

In this way, it is possible to determine that the vehicle has moved even if the reception of the GNSS signal is poor or impossible at the new location.

According to another aspect, the invention relates to a device for preventing a risky situation for a parked vehicle, the device comprising a processor and a memory in which are recorded instructions configured to implement the following steps, when they are executed by the processor:

Obtaining a first vehicle parking location,

Obtaining an indication that the first location is a risky location,

According to another aspect, the invention relates to a vehicle comprising a risk situation prevention device as described previously.

The invention also relates to an information medium comprising computer program instructions configured to implement the steps of a prevention method as described previously, when the instructions are executed by a processor.

The information medium can be a non-transitory information medium such as a hard disk, a flash memory, or an optical disk for example. The information carrier can be any entity or device capable of storing instructions. For example, the medium may comprise a storage means, such as a ROM, RAM, PROM, EPROM, a CD ROM or even a magnetic recording means, for example a hard disk.

On the other hand, the information medium can be a transmissible medium such as an electrical or optical signal, which can be conveyed via an electrical or optical cable, by radio or by other means.

Alternatively, the information carrier may be an integrated circuit in which the program is incorporated, the circuit being adapted to execute or to be used in the execution of the method in question.

The various aforementioned embodiments or characteristics can be added independently or in combination with each other, to the steps of the updating method. The vehicles, devices and information carriers have at least similar advantages to those conferred by the method to which they relate.

Brief description of the drawings

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will become apparent on reading the description which follows. This is purely illustrative and must be read in conjunction with the appended drawings on which:

[Fig. 1] FIG. 1 represents an environment suitable for the implementation of a prevention method according to a particular embodiment, and

[Fig. 2] Figure 2 is a flowchart representing the main steps of a method for preventing a risky situation according to a particular embodiment of the invention,

detailed description

FIG. 1 represents a vehicle 100 parked on exiting a bend. The vehicle 100 is for example a passenger vehicle equipped with a GNSS location system (Geolocation and Navigation by a Satellite System), for example a GPS receiver (Global Positioning System). The vehicle also comprises a calculation unit having a processor and a memory, for example an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) and a communication bus such as a CAN bus (Controller Area Network).

The vehicle 100 also includes a communication module 102, for example a TCU (for Telematic Control Unit in English) suitable for connecting to a cellular access network 102 of the 2G, SG, 4G, 5G, WiFi ^® or WiMAX ^® type, and to establish voice communications with an emergency call processing center 103 via a communication network 104, and to transmit data relating to the vehicle. This is for example an “eCall” type system.

The communication bus allows the ECU to exchange data with other devices of the vehicle, and in particular to receive location data determined by the GNSS receiver and to establish communications via the communication module.

The ECU of the vehicle 100 comprises a processor and a memory, for example a RAM (Random Access Memory) memory in which are loaded instructions configured to implement a method for preventing a risky situation according to a particular embodiment, when they are executed by the processor.

The risk situation prevention method will now be described with reference to Figure 2.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating the main steps of a prevention method according to a particular embodiment.

During a first step 200, it is determined that the vehicle is parked. The fact that the vehicle is parked can be determined by any suitable means, for example by measuring a time during which the speed of the vehicle is zero and by comparing this time with a predetermined threshold or by consulting the activation state of a vehicle parking brake.

When it is determined that the vehicle is parked, a first parking location of the vehicle is obtained in step 201 from the GNSS receiver. In step 202, it is determined whether the vehicle is parked at a risk location. To do this, according to a particular embodiment, a geospatial database comprising records relating to at-risk parking zones is interrogated. The database is stored in a memory of the vehicle and interrogated by means of an SQL (Structured Query Language) query comprising at least the location obtained in step 201. Without modifying the invention, it can be envisaged that the database data is hosted by a server and accessible via a communication network.

The database includes, for example, geographical locations of bends, crossroads, hill tops, bridges or even level crossings or any other location at which it is dangerous or prohibited to park.

Thus, in response to such a request, an indication relating to the danger of parking at said location is obtained for a particular location indicated in the request.

According to a particular embodiment, it is determined whether the vehicle is parked at a risky location by analyzing data from sensors of the vehicle. For this, the vehicle comprises one or more exterior cameras, for example an ADAS (Advanced Driving Assistance System) camera or parking assistance cameras, and a processing unit configured to analyze the images captured in order to identify a risk in the vehicle environment. The images are for example analyzed by a previously trained learning model to detect risky parking situations.

According to a particular embodiment, the method is such that an indication that the first location is a risk location is obtained by detecting at least one signal transmitted by a second vehicle in circulation nearby. The parked vehicle can for example detect a flash of headlights or an audible warning emitted by a vehicle traveling nearby and determine that the parking space is at risk. For this, the parked vehicle analyzes the images captured by a camera and/or a sound signal captured by a microphone using conventional analysis and recognition techniques in order to detect therein, for example, a flashing of the headlights.

As a variant, the indication is transmitted by the second vehicle by means of a wireless communication in accordance with a V2V communication protocol (Vehicle to Vehicle) or V2X (Vehicle To Everything). For example, the indication may be transmitted in a DENM (Decentralized Environmental Notification Message), CAM (Cooperative Awareness Message) or BSM (Basic Safety Message) message.

According to a particular embodiment, it is determined whether the vehicle is parked at a location at risk by analyzing a digital map of the road network. For this, the position of the vehicle on the road network is determined from the location data obtained. It is also possible to advantageously use the orientation of the vehicle to determine its direction of movement on the road network at the time of parking or even to analyze images captured by cameras outside the vehicle to determine whether a vehicle is parked on the left side or the right side of the road.

The location of the vehicle on the road network being thus determined, the geometry of the corresponding road segment is analyzed in order to determine a risk of parking at said location. The analysis of the geometry of the road segment combined with the position and orientation data of the vehicle thus makes it possible to determine whether the vehicle is parked in a curve, at the exit of a curve, under a bridge or on a bridge, in a tunnel, on a level crossing, etc.

Of course, the different embodiments described above can be combined.

When in step 202 it has been determined that the vehicle is parked at a risk location, an alert is broadcast to the attention of the occupants of the vehicle during a step 203. The alert can be broadcast in the form a pre-recorded or synthesized audio message inviting the driver to move his vehicle and/or displayed on a screen or evidenced by the activation of a particular indicator. Any method making it possible to indicate to the driver that he is parked in a high-risk location can be envisaged without modifying the invention, for example an audible alarm.

At step 204, a timer is triggered to measure the time elapsed since the broadcast of the alert message. At the end of a predefined period of between 30 seconds and 5 minutes, a second location of the vehicle is obtained during a step 205. This second location is compared with the first location during a step 206 in order to determine whether or not the vehicle has been moved since the broadcast of the alert message.

When, at the end of step 206, it has been determined that the vehicle has not been moved since the broadcast of the alert message, the communication module is controlled during a step 207 to establish communication with an emergency call handling service. For example, an “eCall” type communication is triggered in which geographical coordinates of the vehicle are transmitted.

In a particular embodiment, when it has been determined in step 206 that the vehicle has moved, steps 200-206 are repeated to determine if the new location of the vehicle is a safe location.

In a particular embodiment, the steps 205 and 206 can be replaced or consolidated by a measurement of the evolution of the speed of the vehicle, of a distance traveled or of an acceleration during the predefined period following the broadcast of the alert message .

Claims

1. Method for preventing a risky situation for a parked vehicle, the method comprising the following steps:

Obtaining a first vehicle parking location,

Obtaining an indication that the first location is a risky location,

2. Method according to claim 1, in which the indication that the first location is a risky location is at least obtained by querying a geospatial database from at least the first location of the vehicle to obtain an indication relating to the dangerousness of the location of the vehicle.

3. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the indication that the first location is a location at risk is at least obtained by analyzing data from an exterior camera of the vehicle.

4. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, such that an indication that the first location is a risky location is obtained by detecting at least one signal transmitted by a second vehicle.

5. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the step of detecting that the vehicle has not been moved comprises the following steps:

Obtaining a second location of the vehicle, and Comparing the second location with the first.

6. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the step of detecting that the vehicle has not been moved comprises measuring the evolution of a vehicle moving speed within the preset time after the warning message is broadcast.

7. Device for preventing a risk situation for a parked vehicle, the device comprising a processor and a memory in which are recorded instructions configured to implement the following steps, when they are executed by the processor:

Obtaining a first vehicle parking location,

Obtaining an indication that the first location is a risky location,

Broadcast of a warning message to the attention of the occupants of the vehicle, When it is detected, at the expiration of a predefined period after the broadcast of the message, that the vehicle has not been moved, triggering a call to an emergency call processing centre.

8. Vehicle comprising a risk situation prevention device according to claim 7.

9. Information medium comprising computer program instructions configured to implement the steps of a prevention method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.